War That Saved My Life

War That Saved My Life

by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
Publisher: Puffin Books
Reprint, ©2016, ISBN: 9780147510488
Trade Paperback, 336 pages
Price: $9.99

This was my favorite book of 2019--one of those books that truly deserves the accolades it received when it was a runner-up for the Newbery.

Ten-year-old Ada has never left her one-room apartment. Her mother is too humiliated by Ada’s twisted foot to let her outside. So when her little brother Jamie is shipped out of London to escape the war, Ada doesn’t waste a minute—she sneaks out to join him.

So begins a new adventure of Ada, and for Susan Smith, the woman who is forced to take the two kids in. As Ada teaches herself to ride a pony, learns to read, and watches for German spies, she begins to trust Susan—and Susan begins to love Ada and Jamie. But in the end, will their bond be enough to hold them together through wartime? Or will Ada and her brother fall back into the cruel hands of their mother?

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Exodus Rating:
FLAWS: Vivid depictions of child neglect & abuse, minimal language, subtle reference to a lesbian relationship
Summary: Ada, disabled and abused, escapes from her mother during WWII and learns what it means to live while staying with Susan.

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